August 16 2009 William writes:
Grizzly Man - This film reveals much about the nature of man and bears.
March of the Penguins - Animals acting as an organizm with only enough time and energy to survive.
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May 15 2009 William writes:
This is the best management book I have read to date.
In the preface he articulately describes my ideal government foundation. “Allowing people the freedom to pursue their own interests, within the beneficial rules of just conduct, is the best and only sustainable way to promote societal progress.” Charles G. Koch, MBM p.ix
Charles Koch explains the principles of Market Based Management (MBM) and how they are implemented in Koch Industries. MBM is a management philosophy that uses the science of human action to avoid bureaucracy by creating markets within an organization to promote value creation through innovation. The successful use of MBM has allowed Koch Industries revenues to grow from $70 million in 1960 to $90 billion in 2006. It is now also the proud owner of Georgia Pacific.
When implementing the principles, “theoretical grounding is necessary, but by itself is not sufficient to obtain results.” (p41) One must have personal knowledge of MBM and also the skills to apply them.
This description of personal knowledge is what I have been feeling while studying for the Electrial PE exam. “Personal Knowledge is the key to making discoveries. As we study a particular field, we absorb increasing amounts of specific knowledge, including rules, facts, terminology and relationships. At some point, we know these details well enough that we can begin to focus on the whole. We can then begin to see patterns, the meaning of things and sense when something is wrong, even though we may not always be able to articulate our understanding.” (p43) At first the power lines look like a random knot of wires but after learning some of the common components and structures I can follow electricity from the source to the destination with little effort.
Bureaucracy is a trap avoided by taking systematic steps to ensure every participant understands and is committed to the MBM principles. Without this understanding, implementation by management tends to be with a rigid formula that undermines the market aspect of MBM to achieve superior results.
MBM Principle 2 is compliance. “Striving to comply with every law does not mean we agreeing with every law. But, even when faced with laws we think are counter productive, we must first comply. Only then, from a credible position, can we enter into a dialogue with regulatory agencies to demonstrate alternatives that are more beneficial” This stance is in direct contradiction to my childhood creed of “Forgiveness is easier than permission”.
“Progress, whether in business, an economy or science, comes through experimentation and failure.” (p17) Change is the seventh principle of MBM and is meant to drive creative destruction. Progress is messy and unless you embrace creative destruction you will be destroyed by creative destruction.
Principled Entrepreneurship is an MBM principle that encourages decisions that create change. To make decisions one must have the necessary authority however: “1) decisions rights are not granted or bestowed, the are earned, and 2) lack of authority is not considered an excuse for inaction in the face of a problem that needs to be corrected or an opportunity that should be pursued.” (p132) This sounds very similar to the Nuremberg Principle IV that states, “The fact that a person acted pursuant to order of his Government or of a superior does not relieve him from responsibility under international law, provided a moral choice was in fact possible to him.” I used this excuse of insufficient authority 3 days ago on a project within SolarCity. This is just one concrete example of how this book has helped me.
“Virtue without the required talent does not creat value.” MBM p83
“The rate of discovery is highest when everyone works together in sight of each other.” MBM p164
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May 12 2009 William writes:
Wyatt sent this book to me. As always Malcolm Gladwell takes the reader around the world in 150 pages.
A person’s success is often based more on hidden advantages and extraordinary opportunities and cultural legacies that allow them to learn and work hard than any innate talents.
This book clarifies the rewards of hard work and utilized opportunities and advantages.
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